"You better be back here by-"

"11:00 sharp tomorrow morning, yeah, yeah, I know, Reggie. It's not like you've mentioned that ten times before or anything." Sirius rolled his eyes, casually blowing on his nails in an attempt to look uninterested with the conversation. Even though he was staring at his nails - which he'd need to remember to paint black later to spite his dear parents - he already knew his brother was wearing the same constipated expression that he always did whenever he was relaying information.

"I'm being serious, mother will actually murder you this time if you're late. She's already pissed off about your absence at that last meeting." Regulus reminded, turning on his heel. It was visible he was fed-up with Sirius's nonchalant attitude.

Sirius rolled his eyes, "I don't give a rat's ass if she's pissed."

"You should." And with that, Regulus was already gone, leaving Sirius alone in his own thoughts.

The room had a dark atmosphere to it like the rest of Grimmauld Place, and Sirius despised it. It was nothing like the Potter estate, which although big, always felt homey and welcoming. In this moment, all Sirius could think about was how he'd give anything to be there.

Sirius Black was eleven years old when he met James Potter at Hogwarts - a posh boarding school in Scotland. It was a Black family tradition to attend the academy. Once, his father had even insisted this school was finally going to show him how to act like a proper Black heir. Originally, Sirius had despised the idea of following his parent's footsteps, even at such of a young age. There was also a boy - Remus Lupin - who lived down the road. Every since he was six years old, the two had snuck out together at night. Sirius knew that his parents would never approve of his friendship with the other, so they kept it a secret. The idea of leaving behind his only friend destroyed him at the time. However, in hindsight, it was probably the best thing that had ever happened to him.

The first time Sirius met James, he knew he was just like Remus. He was selfless, brave, and above all - mischievous. During their time at Hogwarts, the two of them (occasionally accompanied by Peter Pettigrew, a childhood friend of James') managed to stir up more mayhem then the institution had seen in all of its years. It wasn't long before they became legends of sorts among their peers.

Unfortunately, not everyone had viewed their pranks as magnificent. His mother and father were furious when they heard about the way he behaved. When he returned from Hogwarts for the summers, punishments were almost always intact. To this day, he still had faint lines scorched into his skin, reminding him of every discipline he received. Much to his parents dismay, this never managed to stop him. If anything, it fueled Sirius to act out even more.

Concluding his fifth year, Sirius had spitefully decided to avoid coming home for summer. Without parental consent, he had decided to stay with the Potters. It was a brilliant few days that he was there. The Potter Estate was nothing like Grimmauld Place. James's home was warm, cozy, and best of all both of his parents had welcomed him with open arms. For the first time in his life, he had witnessed how a family should behave. It was short lived, however. On the fourth day, Walburga Black had burst into the household, making a huge scene as she forcefully took Sirius back home. It was safe to say he spent the rest of that summer locked up in his room.

Now that he and James had graduated from Hogwarts, Sirius found himself back at Grimmauld place. However, it was a lot different than from how he remembered it being at age ten. For one thing, his secret - the boy down the road - was gone. It had came as quite a surprise to Sirius when he arrived home only to see the Lupin's house abandoned.

Secondly, now his parents were insistent on him joining the family business. They had tried roping him into a meeting a month ago, but Sirius had conveniently decided against going. Naturally, this only proved to piss his parents off further - who threatened to kick him out of the house if he didn't attend tomorrow's conference.

Sirius sat down on the edge of his bed, eyeing the mirror on the wall and staring idly into his reflection. Oh, how he had changed over the years. Of course, he was still raggedly attractive - a trait that seemed to bless all the Blacks - but he looked worn out. There were uncharacteristic bags under his eyes and the usual flame in his eyes was nowhere to be found. He had little time to examine his features before he hears a faint buzzing noise coming from his bed.

Breaking out of his trance, Sirius reached over for his phone and picked up. Almost instantly he perked up when he recognized the number. He answered happily, "Missing my wonderful presence already, James?"

"Oh, definitely," A familiar chuckle made its way through the receiver. "I was actually calling up to see if you could make it to the pub on sixth street tonight. Lily's out with Marlene and Dorcas, so I thought it'd be ideal if you, Pete, and I could just hang out together - just the three of us."

Sirius's lips curled into a small smile, "You know I wouldn't miss it for the world," He replied genuinely. Hanging out with the boys was definitely the highlight of any afternoon for him. As much as he liked Lily, James's fiancee, he couldn't deny that he loved to indulge in some alone time with just his mates.

"Great!" Even though Sirius couldn't see him, he already knew there was a grin gracing his best friend's lips. "I'll see you then."

"See you then," Sirius echoed, about to put his finger over the end call button when he heard James's voice softly call out his name. "Yeah?"

"I've been, uh, meaning to ask… how is it, being back there? With your parents and all that?" James finally bit the bullet.

Even though he knew this conversation was coming, he was still got off guard. Instantly, he formed a lie, "Oh, it's great."

There was a pause, as if James was trying to find the right words. "Are you sure, Sirius? I mean, you know you always have an open invite at Lily and mine's. You don't need to stay there."

Sirius's heart swelled. He wanted to take up the offer, but he knew very well he couldn't. Not yet, at least. "You know I can't exactly leave Regulus here alone. Plus, I'm only going to be here for a few months, as I get a grip on how the Black company runs. Then, I'm off."

"Alright, mate. I know." James's voice wavered slightly, but it wasn't long before it regained its usual upbeatness. "I'm looking forward to seeing you tonight! Pete's apparently got a girlfriend!"

"I'll see it when I believe it," Sirius joked. It wasn't that Peter wasn't relationship material, it was that the boy had a tendency to turn into a clammy mess around the fairer sex.

A tiny grin fell on his lips. Who knew about tomorrow - but definitely, tonight was going to be great.